NEWTOWN -- When Greg Gnandt affixed 26 copper stars to the roof of the Sandy Hook Firehouse on New Year's Day, it was with deep empathy for the families who lost loved ones on Dec. 14.

On Saturday, Gnandt was joined at the firehouse by some 200 residents and state and federal officials in a dedication ceremony for the stars and a bronze plaque, created by him from a design by Jeffrey Gazerro.

The 26 raised stars on the plaque are each underscored with the name of a victim under it from the Dec. 14 shooting at Sandy Hook Elementary School.

The stars and plaque will remain at the firehouse -- the first permanent monument to the 26 victims of the Sandy Hook Elementary School shooting.

"The ceremony was beautiful," Gnandt said after the event. "And the plaque really hit the mark. It came out just as we wanted it to."

Monsignor Robert Weiss spoke Saturday, telling those who gathered, "People looked to the stars before recorded time as a source of strength, a source of guidance, to show them where to go. Let these stars lay a path for us to follow into the future."